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Valentine's Day Viewed Differently Around the World
ASHA POLLARD
2/14/08
Nation & World
Nation & World
Celebrated on Feb. 14, South Africans evoke great passion and enthusiasm for the romantic occasion.
Young girls take part in an old-age Roman festival of Lupercalia, in which the girls pin the name of their lovers on their sleeve.
Shops and market places are adorned with flowers, love symbols such as hearts and traditional African art as well.
The eve of Valentine's Day is when all the partying begins for South Africans. Clubs, restaurants and pubs are completely booked, and tourists flock to various venues to indulge in the holiday cheer.
"My parents would always go out on Valentine's Day," said Mikaela Botton, a freshman biology major from Aberton, South Africa.
"I lived [in South Africa] at a very young age and did not experience the Valentine's Day traditions myself, but I remember my parents and family members going out. They would go to local restaurants, and my cousins went to clubs."
Femi Botha, a South African native, moved to northeast Washington, D.C. two years ago. He said, "Valentine's Day is recognized in my country, but it is not as big as it is in the United States.? Most people who celebrate it back home are either tourists or teenagers."
India celebrates Valentine's Day much like America.
"We do the same things that you do here in the U.S.," said Howard alumna and India native, Radhakrishna Lakshman.
"Although, mostly younger people celebrate [Valentine's Day] back home, on Feb. 14, they exchange cards and candy and go on special dates, the same as the young people here," Lakshman said.
A fairly new tradition in the country, there are some in India who remain hesitant about celebrating Valentine's Day because of its negative connotation as a western import focused on the attainment of profits from a conjured-up holiday.
Young girls take part in an old-age Roman festival of Lupercalia, in which the girls pin the name of their lovers on their sleeve.
Shops and market places are adorned with flowers, love symbols such as hearts and traditional African art as well.
The eve of Valentine's Day is when all the partying begins for South Africans. Clubs, restaurants and pubs are completely booked, and tourists flock to various venues to indulge in the holiday cheer.
"My parents would always go out on Valentine's Day," said Mikaela Botton, a freshman biology major from Aberton, South Africa.
"I lived [in South Africa] at a very young age and did not experience the Valentine's Day traditions myself, but I remember my parents and family members going out. They would go to local restaurants, and my cousins went to clubs."
Femi Botha, a South African native, moved to northeast Washington, D.C. two years ago. He said, "Valentine's Day is recognized in my country, but it is not as big as it is in the United States.? Most people who celebrate it back home are either tourists or teenagers."
India celebrates Valentine's Day much like America.
"We do the same things that you do here in the U.S.," said Howard alumna and India native, Radhakrishna Lakshman.
"Although, mostly younger people celebrate [Valentine's Day] back home, on Feb. 14, they exchange cards and candy and go on special dates, the same as the young people here," Lakshman said.
A fairly new tradition in the country, there are some in India who remain hesitant about celebrating Valentine's Day because of its negative connotation as a western import focused on the attainment of profits from a conjured-up holiday.
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